Private Project

The Fear

A solicitor burdened by a tough case, and a barman burdened by a tough life, meet in a pub before opening. Who drinks first?

  • Eoin Ó hAnnracháin
    Director
  • James Browne
    Writer
  • Eoin Ó hAnnracháin
    Writer
  • James Browne
    Producer
  • Eoin Ó hAnnracháin
    Producer
  • Claire J Loy
    Key Cast
    "Jane Bermingham"
  • James Browne
    Key Cast
    "Andy Lynch"
  • Barra Vernon
    Director of Photography
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama
  • Runtime:
    6 minutes 40 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 8, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    Ireland
  • Country of Filming:
    Ireland
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • IndieCork Film Festival
    Cork
    Ireland
    October 8, 2024
    World Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Waterford International Film Festival
    Waterford
    Ireland
    November 22, 2024
    Finalist
  • Foyle Film Festival
    Derry
    Ireland
    December 2, 2024
    Official Selection
  • Fastnet Film Festival
    Cork
    Ireland
    May 21, 2025
    Winner: Best in Cork
  • Boyne Valley International Film Festival
    Drogheda
    Ireland
    August 10, 2025
    Winner: Best Irish Narrative Short Film
Director Biography - Eoin Ó hAnnracháin

Eoin Ó hAnnracháin is a director, writer and producer of Film, Theatre, Radio and Dance. He has directed projects funded by the BAI, Arts Council and City Councils, screened in competition, toured Theatre and Dance nationally, and won Best Drama at the 2022 IMRO Awards for directing the Radio Drama "Whispers" by Ruth Hayes.

His most recent short film "River Fragments" – about two dancer’s journeys along the river; screened in competition at the 2021 Indie Cork Film Festival.

Previous screen directing work includes the short films "Breakfast" – about the last breakfast a couple share in the house they can no longer afford, which screened at the Fastnet Film Festival, and “The Night Shift” – about a man consumed by the ritual of his shift work, and cursed to repeat it every night, even though the factory has closed down.

Eoin has also written and directed numerous theatre projects including “Erin Connolly and the Children of Lir” – a modern reworking of the classic Celtic myth for family audiences, and “Thomas Kent–1916 Rebel” – the dramatisation of the life of Thomas Kent, who was executed in 1916; which toured as part of the 2016 Commemorations.

He has formed a writing partnership with long-time collaborator James Browne with the feature film script “A Reckoning”, and the short film scripts “Hallucinating in a Modern World”, and “The Fear”.

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Director Statement

“The Fear” is a short film about the use of alcohol as a coping mechanism for trauma. We examine how the use of the substance to sooth trauma from the past, results in a hangover that causes us to be more anxious of the present, to have ‘the fear’.

Anxiety disorders such as PTSD come from past trauma and cause the sufferer to experience a heightened amount of anxiety when dealing with normal day to day challenges that life brings.

With this film we set out to make this experience of living with anxiety disorders more relatable, and accessible, to non-sufferers and the wider public as a whole, by correlating the experience of how a hangover causes the body and mind to be more anxious, to the similar way that anxiety disorders affect both body and mind.

The trauma root that we use in this film is the occurrence of institutional cover up of abuse. The scale and lasting effects of this tragedy has left a scar on the psyche of our nation. One could argue that our society has PTSD. As a nation we are still processing this fact of Irish history. This film represents our attempt as Irish citizens to process it through our art. To create a platform for inclusive dialogue in an attempt to help society to deal with the repercussions of this dark chapter.